Is it permissible for someone who has ill-gotten or stolen money, whose owner is unknown, to dispose of it by giving it to his poor relatives?
The money one is accountable for falls into two categories: The first is money belonging to known individuals, which must be returned to them. If reaching them is impossible, then it should be given as charity on their behalf. The second is money that cannot be returned to its owners, such as usurious interest. It is not permissible to leave it to the bank. The repentant person must spend it on charitable causes without benefiting from it personally. If the questioner's relatives are poor, it is permissible to give them from this money if it falls into the second category, provided they are not among those whose maintenance is obligatory upon him.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/49298
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 49298
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy